The Night Before Christmas
by KatieGirl901
Summary: "Thinkin' about cracking that open." He said with a grin, "you in?" Picks up where Season 16 Episode 10 left off Ellick and Slibbs Christmas story!
1. Chapter 1

**One**

He watched the scene unfold before him with a gentle smile on his face, not only was he grateful that a child was being safely returned to a loving home but he was also proud of the work his agents had done. He had had his doubts when they had brought the baby back to NCIS but they had proven him wrong and done him proud with how well they had handled having a baby around, especially when Torres had been so adamant that he wasn't good with children. He felt the woman beside him bump into him and his smile turned to a grin.

"Merry Christmas, Gibbs." She said.

"Merry Christmas to you, Jack." He replied turning to face her, "you still goin' skiing?"

"It's a bit late for that." She responded with a small shrug, "why, you got a better plan?"

"Oh, just thinkin' about that gift bottle you gave out." He said, raising an eyebrow at her.

"Kentucky's finest." She replied excitedly, "small batch."

"Oh, I'm gonna crack that." He said, "you in?"

She didn't offer a verbal response but the way she grinned up at him was answer enough, she let out a small laugh as she leaned forward and rested her hands against his chest. It felt like the most natural thing in the world to lean down and kiss her forehead before wrapping his arm around her and pulling her against him. He listened to the laughter of his agents as he held her to his side, it felt right.

They waited while Ellie and Nick finished speaking to the baby's parents, he watched as they both said goodbye to the baby. He could tell they were both struggling but was proud of the way they kept it together. Jack leaned further into his side as Nick and Ellie made their way back towards them.

"They did good." She whispered, looking up at him with her chin propped on his chest.

"Yeah." Gibbs agreed, giving her shoulder one last squeeze before letting her go.

He felt the cold on his side as Jack stepped away, she didn't move more than a few inches but he felt the loss of contact at his side instantly.

"You guys ready to go?" Gibbs asked.

"Yeah." Nick replied quietly.

"Are you still going to Palmer's tomorrow?" Jack asked.

She knew both he and Ellie were struggling with handing over the baby and she understood it more than she cared to admit and she also knew that they would both welcome the distraction.

"No, I'm going to let them enjoy their family time." Nick replied.

She could tell that that was only an excuse, she was willing to bet it was more that he didn't want the reminder of the baby that little Victoria would bring.

"What about you, Ellie, are you still going home?" She asked.

"I couldn't get a flight out until the twenty-sixth, I'm still going to go down until New Years." Ellie replied with a shrug, "my mom would kill me if I didn't show at all, she's already disappointed that I'm not going to be there for Christmas."

"Why don't you two come for the day tomorrow." Gibbs offered, "don't have a turkey but we can do steak."

He watched Ellie and Nick share a look before they both nodded.

"If you're sure you don't mind." Ellie said.

"Wouldn't've offered." Gibbs replied with a shrug, "be there for thirteen-hundred, we can watch that movie you like if you want."

He was feeling generous, he knew they were both sad about giving up the baby and shaken up after the shooting the day before.

"Miracle on 34th Street?" Ellie asked excitedly.

"Sure." Gibbs replied rolling his eyes slightly, "go home, get some rest."

He waited until they had said their goodnights and gotten into their vehicle before turning back to Jack.

"You ready for that drink yet?" He asked with a smirk.

"Absolutely."

N*C*I*S

He watched the flames dance on the hearth, Jack was next to him on the couch, wedged in the corner with her legs across the other side of the couch while he was sitting with his feet on the coffee table, both of them had their glasses in their hands. They weren't touching but they were close enough that he could smell the lingering hints of her perfume.

"This is some good stuff." She stated, looking at her glass.

"Yeah." Gibbs agreed with a chuckle.

"I needed it after this week," She added quietly, "I suspect you do too."

He saw her glance over at him and then over at the cradle that was still resting by the stair case. She knew how hard the holidays were for him.

"So…" She said slowly, "that purple heart that Palmer magically found for Kasie, it was yours wasn't it?"

He looked over at her and shrugged one shoulder, it had been his purple heart but he had seen how much it had meant to Kasie and Palmer and he didn't really need the metal anyway.

"A shrug is as good as a yes from you." She stated with a small chuckle.

"I didn't need it anymore." He replied quietly.

"It made Kasie's Christmas." She whispered, "Jimmy's too."

"Needed something good." He replied after a minute, "we had enough bad this week."

Watching that seventeen year old girl sobbing as she had given up her child, knowing that they had almost lost Ellie and seeing a Veteran end up dead for doing the right thing had been hard, knowing that he had done something to help Kasie heal and knowing that the baby had gone to a good home had been almost cathartic.

"Ellie." Jack guessed.

"We almost lost her, Jack." He muttered.

He hadn't thought before putting a bullet in Vicious' chest but when he had turned and seen Ellie's face, white and drained of blood his mind had jumped to the worst. Images of Shannon, Kelly Kate, Diane and Jenny had flashed through his mind in a split second and Ellie had joined them. He had rushed to her side in an effort to reassure both himself and her that she was fine. He had been so distracted making sure she was alright, putting himself at ease that she was still alive that he hadn't even thought to confirm that the man who had tried to kill her was dead.

"I know." Jack whispered, reaching over to rest a hand on his leg.

"It was too close."

He hated that he could actually feel a lump forming in his throat at the thought of losing his youngest agent.

"But she's fine." Jack reassured him, "everyone is fine."

"For now, what about next time?"

"We can't think like that." She replied with a small shrug, "we… just have to enjoy what time we have now." She finished quietly, "enjoy the little things."

He hesitated for a moment before wrapping his arm around her shoulders, he panicked when she leaned forward, afraid he had overstepped but she simply put her now empty glass down on the coffee table before she melted into his side and wrapped and arm around his waist. He ran his hand up and down her arm lightly and listened as her breathing slowly evened out.

He glanced down at her and admired the way the fire and lights from the Christmas tree reflected off of her blonde hair. He was a little alarmed by how right it felt to be sitting together in front of the fire, her asleep at his side. Everything in him demanded that he put some space between them, stop whatever was happening before it went too far. They were good friends and that was it, or so he thought. They had slowly been testing the line between friends and something more but he wasn't even sure what she wanted, it had felt so right to hold her hand in his, to intertwine their fingers but the way she had pulled away had thrown him for a loop. He knew he had rules for a reason, but looking at her sleeping form he couldn't for the life of him remember what those reasons were. He knew he would never push her, he would let her lead the way but he decided in that moment, that if she took the step into something more than friendship he would gladly let her, rules be damned. He was going to enjoy the little things.

 **Hey Everyone! So I guess I'll jump the gun and throw this up here for Tuesdays episode which was like… WOW! BEST EPISODE EVER! So this kind of started out as a one shot but I decided to publish it as an actual story because it… grew a little bit… It will just be a fluffy piece that I'll be publishing every few days until either Christmas or New Years (Just depends how long it is) I may still update Today's New Friends and Pushing the Limits but for now this will be my main focus, a Christmas present for everyone…. It will be as Canon as possible but it's going to take place starting Christmas Eve running through to New Years and will feature both Slibbs and Ellick (and Ellie's family… that's a bit of a hint as to what's going to happen.)**

 **~Katie**


	2. Chapter 2

**Two**

When Jack woke up the next morning the first thing she noticed was the rather unfortunate crick in her neck, the second thing was the chill in the air and the third was the smell of sawdust and the firm chest under her cheek. She slowly lifted her head and looked around the room, she saw the light streaming into the room and the Christmas tree still glowing in the windowsill. She looked over to the fire place and wasn't surprised to see that the fire had gone out. She debated moving, saving both herself and Gibbs from an awkward moment when he woke up but the decision was taken out of her hands when she felt his arm tighten around her shoulder.

"Merry Christmas." He whispered gruffly.

"Merry Christmas." She replied quietly.

She rested her hand on his chest and shifted so she could look at him, he was rubbing his face with his free hand and she had no doubt he was just as sore as she was with the way he was slouched down on the couch.

"I guess I was pretty terrible company last night." She stated with a small laugh.

She hadn't meant to fall asleep on him like that, but the long week they'd had in combination with the warm fire and the whiskey had been the perfect combination to lull her to sleep.

"Nah." Gibbs replied, "guess I shoulda moved us though."

She laughed and shrugged, she was okay with being a bit sore and she was sure once she got moving it would get better. She sat up slowly and stretched, now that she was away from his warmth she was very aware of how cold it had gotten in the house and she couldn't help but shiver. She grabbed her phone off of the coffee table and was shocked to find that it was already past eleven. Although they hadn't gotten to Gibbs' house until after twenty-three hundred the previous evening and she was willing to bet that they hadn't fallen asleep until well after one, with the week they'd had they'd both earned the extra sleep.

"I'll get the fire started back up and make some coffee." Gibbs offered when he saw her shiver.

"I'm just going to run and get changed really quick." Jack replied, "but I can make the coffee if you want."

Neither of them had bothered to change out of their work clothes after getting back and she desperately wanted a clean change of clothes.

"I can handle it, towels are under the sink if you wanna take a shower." He offered.

She thought about it for a minute before nodding, a hot shower would do her back and neck wonders and she wouldn't mind being able to warm up a bit.

"I won't be too long." She promised, standing up and stretching her back out a bit more.

"Take your time." Gibbs replied, waving his hand dismissively, "Torres and Bishop aren't going to be here for another couple of hours anyway, you staying for the afternoon?"

"If that's okay with you." She replied, "I don't have a whole lot going on at my place."

"Don't think they'd let you leave anyway." Gibbs replied with a small grin.

"Just them?" Jack asked with a smirk.

"If I'm sitting through that movie you are too." He replied.

She grinned at his excuse for wanting her to stay and made her way upstairs to the bathroom without another word. She had left her go bag in the bathroom the night before so she pulled out everything she needed and started the shower, turning it on as hot as she could stand it. She smiled when she saw only a bottle of Old Spice shampoo and a bar of soap in the shower, he truly was a simple man. She washed her hair quickly and enjoyed the hot water for a minute before getting out of the shower, she pulled on a simple pair of jeans and a pale blue turtle neck and carefully dried her hair, leaving it down and wavy around her shoulders before she made her way back downstairs.

She leaned against the entrance to the kitchen and smiled as she watched Gibbs flip bacon and crack eggs into a pan.

"You don't like scrambled right?" He asked without turning around.

"Yeah, I'm not that in to scrambled." She replied.

"How do you like them?" Gibbs asked.

"Sunny side is good please, can I help with anything?"

"Nope, coffee is ready pour yourself a cup." He replied.

Jack poured herself a mug of coffee and leaned against the counter as Gibbs finished cooking breakfast. They sat at the table in companionable silence as they ate their breakfast, they chatted quietly as they cleaned up and then settled back in the living-room. They both sat on the couch, Gibbs with a paper in his hand and Jack with the book she kept in her go-bag. They read quietly for half an hour before they heard the front door opening and the sound of a struggle before it shut again.

"Merry Christmas!" Ellie and Nick both exclaimed as they entered the living room.

"Well aren't you two domestic." Nick commented, wiggling his eyebrows at them.

"Merry Christmas." Jack replied before Gibbs could respond to Nick's comment, "what is all that?" She asked, nodding to the boxes and bags in their arms.

"Well we thought we'd bring our gifts here so we could all open them together." Ellie replied, "where can we put these Gibbs?"

"Just put them over there." He replied, pointing to the corner opposite the TV, "Don't think they're gonna fit under the tree."

Jack rolled her eyes and grinned at his smart ass remark and stood up, she went into the entrance way and grabbed a large bag from the closet and moved it into the living room, taking packages out as she went. She had left her gifts for the team in her car the day before fully intending to give them out while still at the office but it had slipped her mind with the hustle and bustle of the case.

She added her gifts to the pile and watched Gibbs disappear into the basement before reappearing with several packages all of them different sizes. After a bit of debate they decided to watch the movie first and do the presents after supper, Jack and Ellie worked together to make popcorn while Nick made hot chocolate and Gibbs 'supervised' to make sure they didn't burn down his kitchen.

N*C*I*S

The credits to the movie rolled across the screen and Jack looked around the room with a small smirk, Ellie and Nick were both on the floor, Ellie laying on her stomach and Nick sitting propped against the couch, Ellie was still awake while Nick was sound asleep and Gibbs was dozing on the couch beside her, obviously bored with the movie.

She was just about to grab the remote to shut off Gibbs' ancient TV when Ellie's phone started to buzz, effectively waking everyone up.

"It's my mom." Ellie stated apologetically as she answered the FaceTime request, "Hi mom, Merry Christmas."

"Merry Christmas!" Barbra Bishop exclaimed on the other end, "Where are you? I hope you're not at home by yourself."

"I'm not." Ellie reassured her, "I'm at Gibbs' with Jack and Nick." She added, "We just finished watching a movie and we're about to start supper."

"Is Gibbs there?" Barbra asked, "put him on."

Ellie rolled her eyes as she shuffled across the floor to hand Gibbs the phone, Jack almost laughed as Gibbs' quickly tried to make himself look more awake than he was as he took the phone.

"Gibbs!" Barbra exclaimed, "Merry Christmas!"

"Merry Christmas, Barb." Gibbs replied.

"Are you taking care of our girl?" Barb asked, "I heard she was working and that was why she couldn't be home for Christmas, that wasn't just an excuse was it?"

"Mom…" Ellie groaned

"We wrapped up our case late last night." Gibbs replied, "she couldn't get a flight out until tomorrow, 'm makin' sure she's fed and warm don't worry."

"Do you have any plans for the rest of the holidays? Ellie said you all had the week off for a change." Barb stated, giving Gibbs a slightly disapproving look, "you all work too much."

"Mom…" Ellie groaned again

Jack chuckled and reached out to squeeze Ellie's shoulder sympathetically.

"No plans, just gifts and dinner tonight." Gibbs replied.

"Oh!" Barbra exclaimed, "I have the best idea! Why don't the three of you join us for your week off? The boys would love to see you and Nick again and I'd love to meet this young man my daughter has told me so much about and I'd love to meet Jack, Ellie speaks very highly of her."

Jack gave Ellie's shoulder another squeeze as Nick chuckled and Ellie blushed.

"Mom, maybe they have something else going on." Ellie stated, "or maybe they don't want to fly all the way to Oklahoma."

"Of course but if you don't have any plans please consider it, the kids would love to see you Gibbs! We're just going to be relaxing for the next few days but there's always something fun to do on the farm and we have a big New Years party every year, why don't you discuss it and Ellie can call me back later, just promise me you'll think about it!"

"We'll talk it over." Gibbs replied, "Have a Merry Christmas Barb."

"You too, Merry Christmas everyone!"

Everyone called out their goodbyes as Gibbs ended the call, looking quite please with himself that he hit the right button on the first try.

"Your mom seems really nice." Jack commented.

"She is, but please don't feel like you guys have to take her up on that." Ellie said.

"Oh she was serious about that?" Nick asked, coughing in surprise and slight panic

"Oh yeah, my mom is a firm believer in the more the merrier and the entire family loves having new people around." Ellie replied, "plus the my nieces and nephews love Gibbs."

"You've met her family?" Nick asked looking between Gibbs and Ellie, "I mean we all met her brothers but the rest of the family."

"Yeah, spent Thanksgiving with them a few years ago." Gibbs replied, "it's a nice place to get away."

Any other time he would welcome the silence and solitude that came with a week to himself, especially after his last attempt at an escape had been thwarted by Tobias and Phil but the idea of spending a few days on the farm was appealing to him, even if it meant being surrounded by people. A part of him really dreaded being alone, sure he enjoyed solitude but after relying so heavily on his team the past year spending a week alone sounded less like solitude and more like solitary confinement.

"Do you want us there?" Gibbs asked, "you want time just with your family say so, we understand."

He could see Jack and Nick look over at him in surprise, he knew they had both automatically assumed he would turn down the offer. He wasn't even sure why he was considering it, maybe it was the idea of spending that much time away from work with Jack or the nagging feeling at the back of his mind that Ellie wasn't as okay as she seemed to be after the shooting.

"No, I'd love it if you came." Ellie replied honestly, "I just don't want you guys to feel pressured by my mother."

"I don't have anything else planned and a country getaway does sound kind of nice." Jack said slowly, "and I could always get some skiing in."

"Gibbs?" Nick asked, his voice raising an octave in panic that maybe they would actually be going.

He was all for spending more time with Ellie and even Gibbs and Jack, he just wasn't thrilled about the whole 'meeting the family' thing.

"I've got nothing else goin' on." He replied with a shrug, "if you're sure you don't care Bishop."

"I don't care." Ellie replied, "I actually want to see Nick try and survive on the farm for a week."

"Hey!" Nick protested indignantly, "I could survive on a farm just fine."

Ellie raised an eyebrow in challenge and could see Nick surrender to the idea, if for no other reason that to prove a point.

"Fine…" He said begrudgingly, "Let's go to Oklahoma."

 **As usual I own nothing, thank you everyone for your reviews I love to read them! This wasn't my favourite chapter but I had to figure out how to get everyone where I wanted them so here we go (insert shrug here). Hope you all enjoy!**

 **~Katie**

 **As a side note I am writing this rather quickly and I am the sole editor so all mistakes are mine, normally I do a more through read over but I want to get this out before Christmas.**


	3. Chapter 3

**Three**

Jack looked around the snowy landscape as Gibbs pulled off of the main road and onto a winding driveway, as much as she loved the city there was something to be said for the snow covered fields and trees surrounding them.

"It's gorgeous." She stated quietly.

She kept her voice low, Nick and Ellie had barely lasted five minutes into the hour long drive from the airport before they were sound asleep. She glanced in the review mirror and smirked at the sight that greeted her, Nick was slouched across the back seat with his head resting on Ellie's shoulder and Ellie had her head tilted to rest on top of his.

"Yeah." Gibbs agreed, "it's a nice place."

Jack leaned forward in her seat as a large farmhouse came into view, a barn set a bit further back on the property. There were several cars and vans parked outside the house and she noticed a few kids playing by the barn and a dog running around.

"Looks like a busy place." Jack commented.

"It's a circus." Ellie whispered groggily from the back seat.

"Look who decided to wake up." Jack teased, "circuses are always fun." She added with a grin.

"Wake up Torres and tell him we're here." Gibbs ordered gently.

Jack waited until Gibbs parked the car before she undid her seatbelt, she looked over at him and saw him watching something in the distance. She followed his gaze and smiled sadly when he saw what he was looking at, a young girl and boy giggling in the snow. She had no doubt his mind was thinking about his own young daughter playing in the snow. She reached over the console and gently squeezed his knee, she felt him place his hand over top of hers for a moment before he removed the keys from the ignition and opened his door.

She opened her own door and stepped out into the frigid air, she pulled her jacket out of the car and pulled it on with a shiver. She turned when she heard the kids exclaiming excitedly and running towards them, a large German Shepard following close behind.

"Aunt Ellie!" The girl exclaimed, rocketing into her aunts arms, "Gibbs!" She added when she saw the older man standing by.

"Hey, Kiddo." Gibbs greeted, ruffling the girls hair.

The boy was slightly more reserved, Jack was willing to guess he was about six which meant he probably didn't recognize any of the people with his aunt.

"Hey Caleb." Ellie greeted happily, she used her free hand to pull the boy into her other side and kissed them both on the forehead, "Caleb do you remember my friend Gibbs?"

Caleb shook his head in the negative and eyed Gibbs uncertainly, Ellie nudged him a bit and the boy held out his hand to Gibbs.

"It's nice to meet you sir." He greeted politely.

Jack raised a eyebrow, impressed by how polite the young boy was.

"Nice to meet you too." Gibbs replied seriously, he winked at the girl when she giggled, "can you give me a hand with the bags? I need someone strong."

Caleb nodded earnestly and followed Gibbs around to the back of the car as Ellie introduced her niece to Nick and Jack.

"Well that was Caleb." She said with a laugh, "and this is Olivia."

"Call me Liv." The girl said with a grin, "it's easier."

"Nice to meet you Liv." Jack said with a grin, "I'm Jacqueline, but call me Jack, it's easier."

Liv giggled and nodded, impressed with Jack right away.

"I'm Nick." He stated holding out his hand.

"So you're the guy my Aunt Ell talks about." Liv stated with a raised eyebrow.

Jack had to bite back a laugh at the way Liv eyed Nick up and down before nodding slightly, seeming to approve of the man in front of her. Ellie laughed at her niece's antics and shook her head disapprovingly.

"Come on, let's go help Gibbs and Caleb with the bags before they hurt themselves."

"I feel violated." Nick whispered to Jack as they walked towards the farmhouse.

Jack chuckled as they followed Ellie and the kids into the large open concept farm house. The noise level was almost deafening in the living room and Jack couldn't help but smile as everyone stopped talking as soon as they noticed Ellie. She and Nick stood aside as Ellie was greeted by her entire family before the introductions started.

"Okay, so my brother George, his wife JB and their kids Liv, Caleb and Merri." She stated pointing to each one in turn, "My brother John and his wife Izzy and their kids Jessie and Jace, my brother Robbie and my parents Barbra and David, everyone Jack and Nick."

Jack shook hands and introduced herself to everyone, trying her best to remember names as she went. The kids were all fairly easy to remember but she couldn't quite remember which brother was which.

"Don't worry, we'll all help you with the names." A woman who she thought to be JB whispered, "there are a lot of us."

Jack nodded and smiled her thanks, she cooed at the smiling baby in JB's arms and reached out to give the tiny hand a gentle squeeze.

"How old is she?"

"Three months yesterday, she's the baby of the family although John and Izzy's Jace is only a few months older." JB replied, confirming her identity.

"And the other kids?" Jack asked, nodding to the group surrounding Ellie and Gibbs.

"Liv is ten, Caleb is six and Jessie is three, watch out for that one, she's spirited." JB responded with a chuckle, "I've heard a lot about you from my sister in law."

"I don't know if that should make me nervous or not." Jack stated, grinning at the woman.

"All good things, I think you'll fit in just fine." JB assured her, "I just hope you're used to chaos."

"I did two tours in Afghanistan and I work with Gibbs, chaos is my thing." Jack replied with a chuckle.

"I don't know which one is more daunting, serving in Afghanistan or working with Gibbs."

"Gibbs." Jack replied after pretending to think about it for a minute.

"Talkin' about me?" Gibbs asked from behind her.

"As always you have impeccable timing." Jack stated.

"Good to see ya again, JB." Gibbs greeted, "that the newest addition?"

"Yes this is Merri, the newest and last addition." JB replied with a laugh.

"Now now, don't dash your mother-in-laws dreams of more grandchildren." Barb chastised as she joined the small group.

"Ellie and Robbie can get their butts in gear and start having kids if you want more grandchildren." JB replied.

Jack smiled as she studied the older woman in front of her, it was easy to tell where Ellie got her looks from. Ellie wasn't quite as open and bubbly as her mother but she could see pieces of Ellie's personality in the elder Bishop.

"You must be Jack." Barb stated, holding out her hand, "I've heard a lot about you from Eleanor, she speaks very highly of you, apparently you have quite the calming affect on this one." She said, nodding at Gibbs.

"I try my best." Jack replied with a small smile, "it's nice to meet you too, your daughter is an absolute pleasure to work with and thank you so much for the invitation, you have a beautiful home."

"Thank you, we're happy to have all of you, around here we tend to live by the saying the more the merrier," Barb said with a grin, "this is my husband David, David you remember Gibbs and this is his friend Jack."

"It's nice to meet you." Jack said, holding out her hand.

The oldest Bishop boy, George she thought, was a spitting image of his father, the younger boys had similar features but also had hints of their mother in them. She could tell right away though that Ellie's kind smile came from her father.

"It's nice to meet you too and good to see you again Gibbs." He said, shaking both of their hands, "my girl is looking good, you've been keeping an eye on her?"

"Always." Gibbs promised.

To anyone else his voice would have sounded normal but Jack could hear the small hint of guilt in it, no doubt because of how close of a call they'd had not two days ago.

"Speaking of, where is Ellie?" David asked looking around the room.

"She said she was going to show Nick to the guest room." Barb replied, "I didn't know how you guys wanted to divide things up, if you and Jack want to be in the same room or…" Barb trailed off, "Ellie has a trundle bed in her room and the guest room has two double beds in it, Nick is going to take Robbie's room, there's a loft apartment over the barn and Robbie wanted to stay out there away from the chaos."

Jack looked over at Gibbs in surprise, she hadn't actually thought about sleeping arrangements. She had spent the night at Gibbs' place twice, once when Elena had been there and she'd slept in the guest room and the other night when they'd slept on the couch. She knew she wouldn't sleep if she slept in Ellie's room, too afraid of being woken by a nightmare. She and Gibbs had long since passed the time where they kept secrets about that kind of thing, she didn't want him to witness her having a nightmare but she knew he would handle it better than Ellie.

"We'll share the guest room." Gibbs stated after a minute, "Don't wanna intrude on Ellie, this's supposed to be her break from us."

She shot him a thankful smile and he gave an almost imperceptible nod in response.

"Alright." Barb replied with a wink and a smile, "I'll show you up."

Jack internally groaned, she knew the older woman no doubt assumed that she and Gibbs were _together_ and them sharing a room confirmed it but Jack fully intended to make use of the second bed. As much as she would no doubt enjoy sharing a bed with Gibbs she didn't want to push him, she was happy with the close friendship that sometimes hinted at more that they had.

They followed Barb up the winding staircase and down a hall until they reached a large homey looking guest-room.

"It's not the ritz but it's comfy." She stated, "the bathroom is through there, it connects to Eleanor's room so just make sure you lock both doors, there are towels in the closet there, the dresser and tables are empty so feel free to unpack and make yourself at home."

She and Gibbs both thanked the woman and set their bags down on their respective beds, Jack opened her suitcase and pulled out the few items that needed to be hung in the closet. She looked around the room as she hung her clothes up, both of the double beds had homemade quilts on them, neither of them matched but they both had the same forrest green and brown colour scheme as the rest of the room. The beds were both made of dark wood, she was sure Gibbs could name the type exactly, and the bedside tables and dresser both matched. The walls were painted a nice cream colour and there were dark red accents scattered around the room.

"Hope this is okay." Gibbs stated, gesturing to the room, "didn't think you'd want to be in with Bishop, just in case."

"I love Ellie but I don't know that I want her seeing me at my worst if I have a nightmare." Jack said quietly, "you've already seen me at my worst."

Her mind flashed back to the day he had found her painting her office, her anger barely in check and tears threatening to fall. He had calmly talked her through it, he hadn't judged her or told her she needed to get through it, he had simply listened and been there for her in a way very few people knew how to be.

She appreciated that Gibbs didn't try to respond to that, he only nodded and went about unpack his small suitcase, Jack's eyes moved to the much larger suitcase he had brought and tucked away in the corner. She knew Gibbs wasn't the type to travel with a lot so she wasn't sure what exactly was in the suitcase but he hadn't let anyone else handle it.

"'M gonna go change." He stated, holding up a pair of worn jeans and a red hoodie.

She eyed the dress pants and button up shirt he had worn for their flight and nodded, she was okay in the clothes she had worn a nicer, but still comfortable, pair of dark wash jeans and a navy blue knit turtleneck. It only took Gibbs a minute to get changed but by the time he returned from the washroom Jack had finished hanging her clothes in the small closet and putting the remaining items into her half of the dresser.

"I left that side open for you." She said, gesturing to the right side of the dresser.

"Thanks."

She watched him hang up the clothes he had traveled in and then put a few pairs of neatly folded jeans, a handful of shirts and another hoodie into the drawers. She wasn't surprised to see that he was just as tidy and methodical with his clothes as he was with everything else. For a man who broke rules left and right he liked to have order in the rest of his life. She sat on the edge of her bed, unsure of what to do with herself.

She didn't know Ellie's family at all, she had never met her brothers like Gibbs and Nick had and she obviously didn't know anyone else so she was hesitant to make her way downstairs on her own. She was grateful when Gibbs stood up and nodded his head at the door.

"You want a bit of quiet or are you ready to head down?"

"I'm ready to go down." Jack replied, pushing herself off of the bed.

 **Day Three! Give it up for day three! (If you've watched SpongeBob you know what voice I'm using there…) Thank you all so much for your reviews I hope you enjoy this new update! Remember I own nothing :(**

~Katie


	4. Chapter 4

**Four**

Gibbs couldn't help the small smile that had settled on his face as he watched Jack and Ellie work with the other women in the kitchen. He and Nick had been exiled to the living room to sit with the other men, Caleb and Liv were back playing outside while the three youngest kids took a nap. He listened to Nick tell George and David about one of his undercover operations for a few minutes before he ventured over to the kitchen, excusing himself to get another drink.

"Are you sure you don't need any help with anything?" He asked, leaning against the island beside Jack.

"Nope." Barb replied.

"We have a system." Ellie stated.

"You would just be in the way." Jack finished, tossing Ellie another potato.

Gibbs shook his head as he watched the three women peel potatoes for dinner, JB and Izzy were peeling carrots and slicing celery at the other end of the counter.

"If you want to do something you can grab a cutting board and start in on those onions." JB suggested, nodding to the pile of onions sitting on the counter.

Gibbs nodded and grabbed the onions and a cutting board, he pulled his knife from the holster on his waist and flipped it open.

"No." Jack said before he could do anything, "use a kitchen knife." She ordered.

"This one works just fine." He replied defensively.

"Get a new knife." She said again, "or sanitize that one."

Gibbs had to fight not to roll his eyes but reached behind him to grab a kitchen life none the less.

"Whipped." Ellie coughed.

"Watch it." Jack warned with a glare.

Ellie tried to look chastised as she went back to peeling her potato, Jack rolled her eyes but offered Gibbs a smile in thanks. He did roll his eyes as he started peeling the skin off of the onion in front of him, he could see the smirks on everyone's faces.

"You're making us all look bad, Gibbs." George called from the living room.

"You could offer to help too you know." JB called back pointedly.

"Do you really want all of us in there with you?" Robbie asked, "I can barely boil water."

"You four just stay where you are." Izzy ordered.

Gibbs watched her reach into the cupboard for something and saw the glass teetering on the edge just before it fell to the ground, shattering loudly.

"Shoot." Izzy exclaimed, leaping back in surprise.

"Watch yourself!" Barb warned.

Gibbs turned to go look from a broom and dust pan but was stopped when his gaze landed on Ellie. Her face was as white as a sheet and she was gripping the counter in front of her so tightly her knuckles were white. Her eyes were shut tightly and he couldn't tell if she was breathing or not.

"Bishop?" He asked, stepping towards her, "Ellie."

As he got closer he could tell she was taking sharp, shallow breaths, her grip on the counter slackened as she sank to the floor and wrapped her arms around her knees tightly. Jack dropped the potato and peeler that she was holding and sank to her knees in front of Ellie, Gibbs sank down beside her and gently placed his hands on Ellie's cheeks.

"What's wrong?" Barb asked, her voice panicked.

Gibbs held his hand out to stop her from approaching before returning it to Ellie's cheek.

"Ellie." He whispered gently, "talk to me."

"Can't… Breath…" She gasped.

"Panic attack." Jack stated, "Ellie, count with me." She ordered gently.

Gibbs listened as Jack listed off random numbers, but Ellie only buried her head between her knees.

"Blood… Gibbs…" She whimpered.

"There's no blood, Ellie." He reassured her.

The pieces were slowly falling together as he realized that the glass breaking had triggered a flashback to the shooting.

"Look at my hands." He ordered, wiping them across her ear and neck and then holding them out, "there's no blood, you're okay."

Ellie shook her head rapidly and clasped her hands together behind her neck, Gibbs could see she was shaking like a leaf and that tears were now streaming down her cheeks.

"Please…" She begged quietly, "Gibbs… Help…"

"Ellie." Jack said softly, "You're safe, Gibbs and I are right here, we're in Oklahoma not DC, you're okay, honey, just try and take some deep breaths. I know it's hard and you're scared but just give it a try. Gibbs and I are right here, we've got you, sweetie, you're okay."

Gibbs heard Ellie take a shuddering breath and was relieved for a minute, he knew it was far from over but he wasn't sure how much longer she would last without breathing properly.

"Nick…" Ellie gasped.

"I'm right here, Bishop, we're all right here."

Gibbs looked over to Nick who was standing slightly off to the side, close enough to help if he was needed but far enough away so that he wasn't crowding them.

"The baby…"

"The baby is just fine." Jack reassured her calmly, "he's just perfect, he's happy, he's healthy and he's safe. _You_ made sure he was safe, you did good Ellie."

Gibbs gently tilted Ellie's chin up and brushed his thumbs across her cheeks, her eyes were still tightly shut but her breathing was slightly better.

"He has a gun…"

"No one has a gun." Gibbs stated, "Open up your eyes, look at me Ellie." He ordered gently.

"Ellie, open up your eyes honey, you're safe, you're in a safe place." Jack stated.

It took a few minutes but Ellie slowly cracked open her eyes.

"Hey, there are those gorgeous eyes." Jack said, "you okay?"

Gibbs gently wiped the remainder of the tears off of her cheeks and leaned back, he could see that although she was breathing properly now Ellie was still visibly shaken up. Her hands were still trembling and she was still pale but she looked arguably better than she had five minutes prior. He could see the minute she realized that almost her entire family was standing by watching her, her cheeks flushed slightly and she looked down in shame. He reached forward and gently placed a finger under her chin.

"I am so proud of you." He whispered firmly.

It was only loud enough that Ellie, Jack and maybe Nick heard it but it was enough to make Ellie glance up.

"You did good, kid." He added, "Damn good."

Jack reached out and gently took Ellie's hand and gave it a squeeze, Gibbs could see that Jack was struggling watching the younger woman suffer but he could only focus on one person at a time.

"Why don't you and Nick go take a walk?" Jack suggested quietly, "the fresh air will help a bit."

 **So sorry for the delay my friends! I'm out of town visiting family and hit a bit of a snag with my laptop, hopefully It'll fix itself but we'll see so please forgive me for any slightly longer breaks between chapters… I love to read all of your reviews they make me so so happy! Have a great night/day everyone and remember I own nothing!**

 **~Katie**


	5. Chapter 5

**Five**

Jack glanced over at Gibbs as the back door shut, although he was hiding it well she could tell he was shaken by Ellie's panic attack and she was fighting to control her own reaction. Her extreme worry for the younger woman had blindsided her, the pain she had felt knowing she couldn't do anything to take away Ellie's pain had been overwhelming and she could tell Gibbs felt the same way. She watched him run his hand roughly over his face, before standing up with a groan. She took his offered hand and let him help her up, she was barely able to dust off her pants before Barb and David were there.

"What just happened?" Barb asked in concern, "I've never seen Eleanor break down like that, has that happened before?"

"Why don't we all sit down in the living room." Jack suggested calmly.

She watched Barb nod and open her mouth before shutting it again, she could see that all of them were struggling with what they had just witnessed and she was sure they had thousands of questions. She only hopped she could answer them.

She felt Gibbs' hand settle low on her back as they made their way to the living room and she was only a little bit surprised when he dropped down onto the couch beside her.

"So what happened? Why did Ellie freak out like that?" George asked, concern written all over his face.

"I can't say for sure but the symptoms Ellie displayed are classic signs of a panic attack." Jack started slowly.

"Why?" Barb asked, "it was so random."

"Panic attacks can happen randomly but sometimes they can be triggered by certain sounds, smells, situations or people." Jack explained.

"The glass breaking." Gibbs stated quietly.

"It could have triggered a flashback." Jack agreed.

Gibbs had told her the details of the shooting and now that he mentioned it she was willing to bet that the glass breaking had triggered Ellie's panic attack.

"Flashbacks are a common symptom of PTSD." Jack stated, "they can lead to or trigger panic attacks."

"Ellie doesn't have PTSD." David stated firmly, "does she?" He asked, his voice more uncertain.

Jack sighed and leaned forward, folding her hands together and resting her elbows on her knees.

"I can't make a firm diagnoses but professionally speaking I think there is a chance."

"PTSD is brought on by a traumatic event." JB stated, "did something happen that we don't know about?"

Jack looked over at Gibbs, she wasn't there and couldn't give them the details that he could but she could tell he was still trying to process everything and wasn't in a place where he could talk.

"There was a shooting three days ago." Jack said slowly, "a bullet missed Ellie by about six inches, it hit a glass jar behind her and I think the glass shattering may have triggered a flashback."

She had to close her eyes when Barb gasped and covered her mouth with her hands, she felt Gibbs' hand on her back and rested her hand on his knee. She had never been an overly touchy person but with Gibbs she drew strength from keeping in contact, it was a new experience that still scared her a little bit but she was grateful that he was nearby and willing to be her pillar in that moment.

"Why didn't we hear about this?" David asked, glaring at Gibbs.

"I'm guessing Ellie didn't want anyone to worry." Jack replied, "She's very independent."

"And she had to be alone after this happened? What she needed was her family around." Barb stated, "what happened to the person who tried to kill my daughter?"

"She has barely left our sight." Gibbs promised, "she was fine until twenty minutes ago."

"And the person who caused this?" David asked.

"He didn't make it." Gibbs replied, not sounding particularly upset about that fact.

"Were you there when it happened?" George asked, "you're supposed to be protecting my little sister."

Jack felt Gibbs stiffen beside her and knew that George had struck a nerve with the Marine.

"Ellie is a grown woman." Jack stated, "she makes her own decisions regardless of what any of us say, if it were up to me she would go back to working a desk where she's safe but I don't get to make that choice for her. We do everything we possibly can to make sure she's safe but there's only so much you can control in the field."

She understood how surprised and upset Ellie's family was, she had and still felt the same way but she wouldn't let them attack Gibbs for something he had no control over.

"Of course." David stated, giving his son a warning glare, "we know you do your best, it's just a bit shocking is all."

"So what's going to happen now?" Barb asked, "how do we help her?"

"Now I'm going to have to recommend that Ellie re-take her psych evaluation before she is allowed to return to field work, I'm also going to recommend that she a therapist at least once to talk a few things out and then we'll have to see where things go from there."

"Will she talk to a therapist?" Barb asked.

"No." Gibbs stated, "she won't talk if she goes alone."

"So what do you suggest?" Jack asked, "she needs to talk to someone."

She knew Gibbs knew Ellie better than she did and she was more than willing to take whatever advice he was willing to give. She was willing to do anything to help Ellie.

"I'll take her to one of my sessions with Grace." He offered, "she knows Grace, she might talk to her if I'm there."

"If you think that'll help then we can talk it over with her." Jack said slowly, "she has to be the one to say yes or no."

"And what can we do to help?" Robbie asked, his voice shaken "I've never seen her like that before."

"Treat her like everything is normal." Gibbs stated, "she doesn't want people coddling her, when she comes back in here go on like nothing happened."

"But if she wants to talk just let her." Jack finished for him.

She knew that Ellie wouldn't handle it well if everyone treated her like a china doll but she wanted to make sure that everyone knew it was okay to let her vent if she needed to. Ellie and Gibbs were a lot alike, the both kept to themselves but eventually they would talk. She was willing to bet that when the time came Ellie would go to Gibbs but she wanted her to have her options open.

 **We'll get to the more fluffy stuff after this I promise but I needed to get this out of the way because in my mind there's no way Ellie walked away from this completely fine. I don't own anything besides my mistakes and I can't promise I'll be able to update between now and Sunday night (Family stuff for Christmas) but I'll do my best! Thank you all for your reviews I love to hear from you!**

 **~Katie**


	6. Chapter 6

**Six**

Nick followed Ellie out the back door and waited as she looked around for a minute before turning towards the barn. He had to speed walk to keep up with the pace she had set and he was glad when they stepped into the barn, the wind was cold and he hadn't thought to bring a warmer jacket.

"You don't need to babysit me."

He watched her wander over to the first stall, he stepped towards her but abruptly stepped back when a horse stuck its head over the stall door. He wouldn't say he was afraid of horses but he wasn't necessarily fond of the large animals, they smelled and were unpredictable. He watched Ellie gently rub the horses nose, leaning heavily on the stall door. He ignored her statement and leaned against the barn wall opposite the stall.

"I feel stupid." She stated with a sigh.

"There's nothing to feel stupid about." Nick replied, "you had a bad day, everyone has them."

He watched her lean her forehead against the horses, she wasn't crying but he could tell she was still struggling with what had happened.

"I've never had a panic attack before, why now? Why in front of my entire family?"

Nick pushed himself off of the wall and crossed the aisle to stand next to her, he didn't hesitate before reaching out to let his hand rest on her lower back.

"You almost died three days ago." He reminded her quietly, "as Jack would say you need time to process that."

"We've almost died on the job before, Nick." She argued, "that wasn't my first close call and I've never reacted like this before!"

He wasn't expecting her to throw up her hands in frustration and judging by the indignant whiny the horse wasn't either. He understood her frustration but he had no idea how to help her.

"You've never had a bullet miss your head by less than six inches." He stated.

She turned to look at him, he could see the anger and confusion on her face, he wasn't sure if the anger was directed at him, herself or the situation.

"My first week on the job I took a bullet to the chest." She said slowly, "my vest caught it but it was one of my first times in the field, I had less experience and less training than I do now and I didn't react like this."

He could hear her voice getting thicker the longer she spoke and he noticed the slight wobble of her lower lip.

"Why is this happening now?" She asked, her voice cracking on the last syllable.

"I don't know."

He opened his arms and wrapped them around her tightly when she stepped forward, he felt her shoulders shake and had to bite his own lip to stop himself from crying right along with her. He had seen her cry before, but the sobs coming from her shaking form were enough to break him. The only thing stopping him from snapping was knowing that she needed him to support her more than ever.

He was well aware of how close he had come to losing her and that thought terrified him. She was his best friend, they did everything together. He had known that his feelings for her were growing but he hadn't realized by how much until he had heard the gunshot in that kitchen, had watched her reach up to feel her neck and head. He had desperately wanted to rush to her side, to make sure that she was okay but Gibbs had beaten him to it.

He held her tighter and ran his hand up and down her back, he rested his cheek against the top of her head.

"Tell me how to help." He whispered.

He had never felt so helpless in his life.

"Just… Hold me please."

 **For those of you asking for a bit more Ellie and Nick here we go! I'm hesitant to write them because I did skip a lot of season 11 and 12 (I was mad about the whole Ziva thing I'm ashamed to admit, however I'm in the process of rewatching) and I have a hard time remembering season 14 and a lot of the information about Nick so I did my best to write this without giving any important information about his past… Remember I own nothing but I love love love to hear from all of you!**

 **~Katie**


	7. Chapter 7

**Seven**

Jack had never been so grateful for children in her life, the silence between the adults had been awkward and deafening after they had finished explaining everything to Ellie's family. It had lasted for five minutes before Liv and Caleb had come flying in, now Jack and Gibbs were seated on the couch listening to Liv tell an animated story about something the dog had done outside. Liv was just finishing her story when Caleb stepped forward, a picture book in hand and a shy look on his face.

"Is there something I can help you with?" Jack asked with a wink and a kind smile.

"C-c-could you read this to me?" He asked shyly.

"Of course I can." Jack replied, she scooted over on the couch and tapped the spot between her and Gibbs, "climb on up here so you can see the pictures."

She glanced over at Gibbs as Caleb got settle and couldn't help but blush when she saw the way he was looking at her. She had seen him laugh, smile and even come close to crying before but the gentle smile on his face and the soft look in his eyes was something she had only seen once, when he had been watching her with the baby. She took the book that Caleb handed her and smiled at the title, ' _The Paper Bag Princess'_ by Robert Munsch.

"H-h-have you read it before?" Caleb asked, looking up at her, "have you read it before, Gibbs?" Caleb asked, when Jack nodded.

"Yeah." Gibbs replied.

Jack could tell by the sad smile on his face that he was thinking of his daughter, who he had no doubt read the book to. She opened the book and started to read, when she reached the part where the dragon spoke she paused and looked over at Gibbs. He rolled his eyes but nonetheless opened his mouth.

" _What are you doing here, little girl?_ " he asked. " _You are very lucky I've just had my breakfast or I might decide to have toasted princess for lunch_."

Jack grinned when Liv giggled from where she had perched on the arm of the couch beside Gibbs and she smiled even harder when Caleb joined in the giggling. She continued reading, making her voice higher when it was the princesses turn to speak and pausing to allow Gibbs to speak for the dragon. They were on the second to last page of the book when the front door opened quietly. Jack watched Nick and Ellie hang their coats up out of the corner of her eye as she finished the last sentence of the book and shut it slowly.

She hadn't been paying any attention to the adults as she had been reading but she realized as soon as she closed the book that they had been as captivated by the story as the children had. She glanced over at Gibbs who had wrapped his arm around Liv's shoulder, the look on his face was content but she could still see a small hint of sadness in his eyes.

"Wow, Gibbs, I didn't know you had it in you." Nick teased with a grin.

Ellie looked much more stable standing beside Nick, her eyes were still slightly red however she wasn't as pale as she had been, she even had a small smile on her face.

"Had enough practice." Gibbs replied with a shrug, "Kelly and Em both loved it."

"I can see Emily loving this." Ellie said quietly, "she and Elizabeth are similar."

"Yeah, they are." Gibbs agreed, "she takes after her mother, doesn't take anyones crap."

"We need to go for breakfast or something with her when we get home." Ellie said, "Jack's never met her and Nick hasn't gotten to spend a lot of time with her."

Jack could tell that Ellie was trying to make conversation in an attempt to make it seem like nothing was amiss and with the exception of a few worried glances from David, Barb and George it seemed to be working.

"Speaking of things to do when we get home can you take a look at my truck, it's making that noise again." Ellie said, rolling her eyes.

"What's wrong with your truck?" David asked.

"Nothing, it just makes this weird noise when I start it up, it was doing it about a month ago but Gibbs managed to get it fixed."

"It was just a quick fix so you could get it in to the mechanics." Gibbs replied, giving Ellie a pointed look.

"I know, I know." Ellie said with a sigh, "I really was going to take it and then work got busy and I needed it to get around."

"I'm taking it in when we get home." Gibbs stated firmly, "You can take my truck for as long as yours is in the shop."

"And then how are you getting around?" Ellie asked in exasperation.

"Got a perfectly good car sitting in my garage and I have my work car if I need it." Gibbs replied with a shrug.

Ellie opened her mouth to try and argue but Jack cut her off before a sound could leave her mouth.

"Don't bother arguing with him, his mind is made up."

"And when Leroy Jethro Gibbs makes up his mind, his mind is made up." Ellie replied, quoting something she had heard Tony say years prior.

Jack watched Robbie and John share a look and a grin at Gibbs and Ellie's debate, she simply shook her head. The term 'like father like daughter' popped into her head and although Ellie and Gibbs were in no way related it seemed to fit, she watched Gibbs smirk at Ellie and couldn't help the fond smile that spread over her face.

 **Merry Christmas everyone! I hope you enjoy this chapter, I'm not 100% sure if there'll be another chapter tomorrow or not but we'll see… I hope everyone has a safe and happy Christmas! Please remember I own nothing but I love love love your reviews!**

 **~Katie**

 **P.S The line that Gibbs reads is a direct quote from The Paper Bag Princess by Robert Munsch!**


	8. Chapter 8

**Eight**

Ellie watched the fire crackle on the hearth, supper had been chaotic and they had spent the remainder of the evening watching the original Frosty the Snow Man. She was seated on the floor, her back against the couch. Gibbs was seated on the couch above her and Jack was next to him with Nick on the end, Robbie and her father were seated on the love seat and her mother and sister's-in-law were upstairs putting all of the kids to bed.

"I think you've watched more movies this week than you have all year, Gibbs." Ellie teased, looking up at the silver haired man.

Gibbs grunted noncommittally and took a sip of his beer, Ellie rolled her eyes good-naturedly and turned back to the fire. There was something comforting in the way it danced, and judging by the comfortable silence in the room everyone felt the same way. They remained silent for several minutes before Ellie startled suddenly.

"We never opened our gifts yesterday!" She exclaimed.

They had gotten so wrapped up in making plans and booking their plane tickets that they had completely forgotten about their presents.

"Big suitcase in our room." Gibbs said, taking another sip of his beer.

"I wondered what was in that!" Jack exclaimed, snapping her fingers, "I knew you had something up your sleeve, Cowboy."

Ellie laughed and pushed herself off of the floor, she waggled her eyebrows at Nick and motioned for him to follow her.

"We'll go get them." She said, "be back in a minute."

N*C*I*S

Jack shook her head at the sly smirk on Gibbs' face. She had remembered half way through their flight that morning that they hadn't unwrapped their gifts but she had kept it to herself, leave it to Gibbs to remember the one thing they had all forgotten. Ellie flew back into the room followed by a much slower Nick who was holding the suitcase carefully. Izzy, Barb and JB wandered back into the room just as Nick was unzipping the suitcase.

"What's going on in here?" JB asked, eyeing the large suitcase.

"We forgot to open our Christmas presents last night." Ellie replied, "and Gibbs remembered to bring them so we thought we'd open them now."

Jack chuckled as Ellie dropped to the floor with her legs crossed, she was happy to see the younger woman looking so calm and at ease. Ellie's panic attack had scared her more than she was willing to admit and she was grateful to see her back to her usual self. Jack had no doubt that it would be an ongoing struggle to help Ellie move on from the shooting but she was grateful for a bit of normalcy, both for herself and for Ellie and her family.

"Okay so who's going first?" Nick asked, pulling out the first package, "to Ellie from Gibbs."

Jack watched Ellie take the package from Nick and open it slowly, her eyes widened and she squealed when she saw the label on the box.

"My crisps!" She exclaimed, "how did you get these, Gibbs?"

"I had Abby send them for me." Gibbs replied.

"The entire house is going to reek." Nick grumbled, "just promise you won't eat them near me."

Ellie stuck her tongue out at him as she stood up to give Gibbs a hug, she dropped back the floor as soon as she let him go and turned back to Nick who had pulled out an envelope with Ellie's name on it.

"Ellie again, this time from Jack." He stated holding it out to her.

Jack grinned as Ellie opened the envelope, she had struggled to find a good gift for the younger woman but judging by the wide smile on her face she had succeeded.

"I'm giving you those as long as you promise you won't make me go with you." Jack said.

She had finally decided on the tickets for an up and coming art exhibit after the Ritz case, she knew Ellie was slowly getting back into art and wanted to encourage that as an outlet to deal with stress.

"I promise."

Nick looked over her shoulder and shuddered.

"I would like a promise as well please."

"I wouldn't take you to an art exhibit after last time." Ellie replied, "Gibbs, will you go with me?"

"You don't wanna take Palmer?" Gibbs asked.

"Jimmy and I are already doing art classes together." Ellie replied with a shrug, "we can make a day of it."

Jack watched Gibbs nod his approval, she wasn't surprised that he was willing to go with Ellie, the small smile on his face that showed a bit of excitement at the idea was a bit surprising.

"Okay, this one is mine." Nick said pulling out another smaller package, "from Ellie."

Jack waited as Nick unwrapped the package, a pair of sunglasses, they were oddly familiar but she couldn't quite place where she had seen them before.

"Are these…" Nick asked, trailing off.

"I found a guy who fixed them, he had to change the lenses out but he managed to get the frames back in one piece." Ellie replied.

Jack watched Nick swallow and blink a few times before he leaned forward and gently kissed Ellie's cheek. She wasn't sure who was more surprised by the action, Ellie, Gibbs or herself, she watched Gibbs open his mouth to speak and quickly placed her hand on his knee with a small shake of her head.

"Um," Nick said, clearing his throat, "this one is to Ellie, from me."

Ellie grabbed the package from him and carefully peeled it open, she shot Nick a curious look as she looked down at the simple photo album, she opened it slowly and gasped when she saw the pictures. Jack peered over her shoulder and watched Ellie flip through an album full of pictures of the team, all of them had MI6 Special Agent Reeves in them.

"How did you get these?" Ellie asked.

"I called in some favours, and I asked around and everyone put in whatever pictures they could find." Nick replied with a shrug.

"Thank you." Ellie whispered.

She reached out to give his hand a gentle squeeze and Jack had to shoot Gibbs another warning glare as he opened his mouth to speak, 'leave it be' she mouthed. Gibbs rolled his eyes but kept his mouth shut nonetheless.

"This next one is to Jack, from the team and Gibbs." Nick said, pulling out a large flat package, "just be careful with it."

Jack took the package and set it down on the coffee table gently, she carefully peeled off the paper and gasped when she saw the large multi-pane picture frame. There were eleven windows total, a large 8x10 pane in the centre surrounded by ten smaller frames of different sizes. In the middle frame there wasn't a picture but rather the words ' _It's our Response that Defines us…_ ' hand painted in flowing calligraphy.

The first picture was of Gibbs and Jack smiling at each other in a booth at the diner, the next one was of her and Ellie sitting cross legged on the couch in her office grinning at the camera. There was one of her and Gibbs sitting at his kitchen table, beers in their hands and cards spread out in front of them, followed by one of Jack, Nick and Clay laughing at something in Abby's lab. Next was her and Leon dressed in workout clothes bumping fists with their boxing gloves on and then one of her and then one of her, Abby, Gibbs, and Tim in the evidence garage grinning at something on a screen. The one of her and Gibbs walking together and grinning at each other was her favourite, the shot of Ellie and Nick sitting on the couch at Gibbs' house was a close second though. The last two pictures were team pictures, the first one was with her and Gibbs in the centre, Abby, Ellie, Ducky and Palmer beside her and Tim, Nick, Clay and Vance beside Gibbs. The second team photo was more recent and had been taken over Thanksgiving, the team had done a late Thanksgiving at Gibbs's house after everyone had returned from their last case, Jack and Gibbs were once again in the middle seated on his couch, Leon was seated beside Jack and Ducky beside Gibbs, Nick, Ellie, Kasie, Tim and Jimmy were seated on the floor and all of them were grinning at the camera.

As soon as she had scanned all of the pictures Jack's eyes returned to the words in the middle, her mind flashed back to the day in her office when she had told Gibbs about her filing cabinet. She took a closer look at the frame and realized that it was hand crafted, the same wood as the cabinet in her office and carefully carved to match.

"Oh, you guys…" She whispered in awe.

"We got all of the pictures together but Gibbs carved the frame, we thought it matched the cabinet in your office." Ellie said, "you don't have to put it in your office of course.

"It'll look great in my office." Jack said firmly, "thank you guys, this is amazing."

She reached down and gave Ellie's shoulder a squeeze and nodded her thanks to Nick who grinned in response. She turned to Gibbs who offered her a smile.

"My dad would've loved it." She whispered, "I love it."

Gibbs placed his arm over the back of the couch and gave her shoulder a gentle squeeze, his arm wasn't quite wrapped around her but it was close enough that she could feel it's warmth. She was so distracted by how close he was that she barely noticed Nick opening his gift from Gibbs and she only snapped back to attention when he thank her for his gift from her.

"Now, Gibbs your gift is from all of us and comes in two parts, I'm going to need a minute to set up the first part okay?" Ellie explained, "Tony and Abby did most of the work on the first part and Nick, Tim, and I worked on the second part here."

Jack watched curiously as Ellie pulled her laptop out and typed something in before turning on the tv and connecting the two.

"I actually haven't seen this whole thing yet, I added a few things to it last night but I haven't played it all the way through." She warned, "Nick can you grab the lights?"

Jack looked over at Gibbs who had his eyebrow raised in curiosity, everyone else in the room looked just as lost as they were, except for Ellie and Nick who looked giddy.

N*C*I*S

Gibbs couldn't even begin to guess what Ellie and Nick had up their sleeves as Nick shut off the lights, the screen on the TV stayed black as soft guitar music filled the room. He didn't know what to expect but when the newspaper clipping of the Fed Five flashed across the screen he raised an eyebrow.

 _'_ _Family's more than just DNA'_ Abby's raspy voice filled the room as the opening lines of the song began.

 ** _Loving can hurt, loving can hurt sometimes._**

He almost gasped out loud when a picture of him, Stan Burley, Jenny Shepard and William Decker flashed across the screen. Pictures of his first team followed, some candid and some posed, those were followed by pictures of him and Jenny in Europe.

 _'_ _It's about people who care'_ Tony's voice said

 ** _We made these memories for ourselves._**

Pictures of him, Tony, Ducky and Abby followed next and then Kate and McGee began making appearances, he dropped his arm from the back of the couch back into his lap when a picture of Kate dancing with Yost in the bullpen.

 _'_ _And take care of each other.'_ Tim's voice carried through.

 ** _Loving can heal, loving can mend your soul_**

He and Jenny leaning on the catwalk drinking their coffees, he and Jenny surrounded by the team, Ducky and Jenny going to the Marine Corps Birthday Ball. Abby, Jenny and Ziva in their PJ's at what he assumed was a girls night.

 _'_ _It's about people who accept you.'_ Ellie's voice said softly.

 ** _We made these memories for ourselves_**

Ziva sitting on Tony's shoulders at a crime scene, McGee and Abby giggling about something in Abby's lab, all four of them in Gibbs' basement with drinks in their hands. Palmer and Breena's wedding. The music cut out for a minute as a video played. Gibbs felt his throat close when Ziva appeared on screen, they were in his back yard and Gibbs was teaching her how to throw a baseball.

 _"_ _You've got it Ziver!" He exclaimed._

 _"_ _Go Ziva!" Abby exclaimed behind the camera._

The video switched to them in a baseball field.

 _"_ _I didn't know you could play, Ziva!" Tony called out._

 _"_ _My father taught me." Ziva replied with a grin._

He saw Ellie look up at him in concern, he could tell by the guilty expression on her face that she hadn't realized exactly what was in the video or she would have let him watch it alone. He reached down and placed a hand on her shoulder, she reached up and reseted her hand on top of it and he wove his fingers through hers, squeezing reassuringly.

 _'_ _The people who would do anything to see you smile.'_ Kasie's voice said.

 ** _So you can keep me Inside the pocket of your ripped jeans_**

The next picture was Ellie sitting on top of her filing cabinet a bag of Cheeto's open in her lap, her and Gibbs in the evidence garage, Tony, Tim and Ellie at his house on the floor watching a movie. Ellie, Abby and Delilah in Abby's lab. Emily and Ellie in the bullpen. Diane, Tobias, Gibbs and Emily at his house.

 _"_ _The ones who love you no matter what.' Nick's voice stated._

 ** _Wait for me to come home_**

McGee and Delilah's wedding. Reeves, Alex and Nick goofing off in the bullpen, Alex and Ellie at a bar, Jack and Gibbs grinning at each other at the diner. Gibbs in the hospital with Delilah, McGee and the twins. Jack and Gibbs in her office, Gibbs and Emily at Fornell's house. Tali, Tony and Abby sitting in front of a Christmas tree, all three signing 'I love you'. Palmer, Breena and Victoria smiling at the camera in front of their tree, Kasie grinning and holding up a peace sign in the lab, Ellie and Nick holding baby Cody in his living room and the next picture was of Jack, Gibbs and Cody, Jack was grinning at the camera and Gibbs was grinning down at her.

The last notes on the guitar played as the final four photos came across the screen, the first of Gibbs, Tony, Kate, Tim, Ducky and Gerald in their crime scene uniforms. The next one was of Jenny, Gibbs, Abby, Tony, Tim, Ziva, Mike, Jimmy and Ducky in the bullpen. The third one of Leon, Gibbs, Alex, Abby, Tim, Nick, Reeves, Jimmy and Ducky. The last one was by far the largest group, Jack, Gibbs, McGee, Delilah and the twins, Leon and his kids, Palmer, Breena and Victoria, Nick, Ellie and Kasie all gathered in the Palmer's backyard for a dinner after Leon's rescue earlier that fall.

The words _'Families don't have to match. You don't have to look like someone else to love them.'_ Floated across the screen before it went dark.

Gibbs felt Jack's hand rest hesitantly on his knee and he placed his hand over top of it, he felt her hand move and thought that she was trying to pull away, instead of pulling away she intertwined their fingers and looked over at him questioningly as Nick put the lights back on. He gave Jack a reassuring smile and squeezed Ellie's hand again.

Two years ago he would have avoided remembering the people on the video, would have hated the thought of seeing all of the people he had lost, but now he cherished the memories, cherished everything he had gone through with his family, with his kids. The good the bad and the ugly.

"We wanted to do something special this year." Ellie explained quietly, "something to show you how much we appreciate everything you do for our family…. How much you mean to us."

"I loved it." Gibbs replied.

The old Gibbs probably would have just grunted noncommittally but he wanted both Ellie and Nick to understand how much he appreciated the thought they had put into the gift.

"We also made this." Nick said, handing him a wrapped book.

Gibbs released Ellie's hand and took the book, from Nick. He released Jack's hand and ignored Nick's raised eyebrow. He opened the package to reveal a large photo album.

"It's all of the pictures in the video, that way you can flip through them at your own pace." Ellie explained, "Abby sent me all of the earlier pictures and she wrote, names and dates on the back."

"Is it okay if I look through it after?" Gibbs asked.

As much as he appreciated the thought he needed a minute to collect himself, he wanted to be able to look through the book alone, so he could remember his family privately.

"Of course." Ellie replied quickly, "actually I think I might head up to bed if that's okay with everyone, it's been a really long couple of days."

"I think I might just join you." Jack stated, "I could use a good nights sleep." She added before turning to Gibbs, "I'll leave the lamp on for you."

"I'll be coming up in a minute." He replied, "just need to run out to the car quickly."

He didn't actually need anything in the car but a breath of fresh air was much needed, he stood up and gave Ellie a quick hug, kissing her temple as he pulled back.

"Night kid."

He gave Nick a hug, which he could tell surprised the agent but he returned the hug quickly. He waited as everyone said goodnight to each other, everyone having decided that an early night didn't sound so bad before he slipped outside.

 **Well I hope everyone had a fantastic Christmas! Please remember I own nothing! I love love love all of your reviews! Also I made myself a tumblr if anyone would like to follow it, Katiegirl901.**

 **~Katie**


	9. Chapter 9

**Nine**

By the time Gibbs made his way upstairs Jack had already changed into a pair of baggy PJ bottoms and a loose t-shirt. She was seated on the edge of her bed, braiding her hair back.

"Are you okay?" She asked gently.

Gibbs nodded and pulled off his sweatshirt, leaving him in an old NIS t-shirt, his short walk had helped him clear his mind and he was grateful.

"Ellie already in bed?" He asked, nodding towards the open bathroom door.

"Yeah, she said the bathroom was all yours whenever you're ready." Jack replied, "I'll leave the lamp on for you, there are towels on the dresser."

"Thanks."

He grabbed the towels off of the dresser and a pair of track pants and an undershirt out of one of his drawers before heading into the bathroom, leaving Jack alone.

She finished braiding her hair and slid under the blankets, leaving the lamp on the beside table on for Gibbs. She wasn't overly surprised when he appeared out of the bathroom, his hair damp in under ten minutes. She had her back to his side of the room so she listened silently as he pulled back the covers and climbed into his bed before shutting off the lamp.

As much as she'd wanted to avoid sharing a room with Ellie she was suddenly very nervous about sharing a room with Gibbs. They didn't have very many secrets when it came to trauma but she really didn't want him to witness her having a nightmare, she knew he understood and probably went through the same things but her nightmares made her feel so damaged and broken she wasn't sure she wanted him witnessing that.

"You're thinking awfully loud, Jack." Gibbs whispered into the darkness.

"Sorry." She apologized, rolling onto her back.

"What's on your mind?"

"A lot." She replied with a sigh, "I'm worried about Ellie."

It wasn't really what was on her mind at that exact minute but it definitely wasn't a lie, she was worried about Ellie.

"Yeah… Me too."

She knew they couldn't really carry on the conversation in that room, the door to the bathroom was shut but there was always a chance that they could be overheard.

"We should go for a walk tomorrow." She suggested, hoping Gibbs would get the hint.

"Would be good to get out."

She almost sighed in relief when he obviously got the message, it didn't put her worries about her nightmares at ease but it helped put some of her other concerns to rest, at least for the moment.

"But that's not the only thing botherin' you."

She was afraid that if she was quiet for too long he would start to guess at what was bothering her and there were too many doors that could open. One door in particular that had been opened a crack by her that she really didn't want him opening any further.

"Nightmares." She stated quietly.

"We all have 'em."

She could almost hear his silent shrug. She knew he was in no way trying to minimize what she was going through, he was simply reminding her that he understood and wouldn't judge her for it, none of them would.

"I know…. I just don't…."

"Want anyone to see you like that." Gibbs finished for her, "I get it Jack, but you can't stay awake the entire trip anymore than I can, anymore than Bishop or Torres can. "

"Do they ever stop? The nightmares I mean…" Jack asked, "it's been almost ten years."

Gibbs seemed to think it over for a minute before sighing softly and turning to face her.

"They don't stop, they lessen, maybe get replaced by new nightmares but they're always there."

It wasn't the reassuring response she had been looking for but she knew it was the truth, she could only imagine what kinds of horrendous things haunted Gibbs' nightmares. Losing the two most important people in his life, two tours of duty, countless gory crime-scenes and tragedies, losing another woman he thought of as a daughter and countless team members had to have taken their toll.

"I hate them." She whispered bitterly, "I hate how alone they make me feel."

For a psychologist she was terrible at talking about her own feelings but she trusted Gibbs and she felt like the weight resting on her shoulders was going to crush her if she didn't get ride of at least a bit of it.

"You're not alone."

She knew he didn't mean she wasn't alone in just that moment, she knew that as long as she allowed it he would be there whenever she needed him. She knew she had Leon and his kids and all of the members of Gibbs' team too but when she woke up in the middle of the night, alone and feeling suffocated by her own screams it wasn't all that comforting. That being said she didn't let people in either, Leon and Gibbs knew some of her biggest secrets but she didn't go to them with something unless she had reached her breaking point, she very rarely sought help for her own problems until it was almost too late.

"We're right here for you if you'll let us be." He added.

 **Hope you all enjoy! I love to hear from you guys! I own nothing!**

 **~Katie**

 **PS. Check out my new IG account Katiegirl901**


	10. Chapter 10

**Ten**

Jack woke from a restless doze at 0630, it had been a long night for her. Despite Gibbs' reassurances she hadn't been able to relax enough to fall asleep. She had drifted in and out of a light doze for a few hours but hadn't managed to actually fall asleep.

"Did you sleep at all?"

She turned around, stretching out her back as she did so, to face Gibbs' bed.

"A bit." She replied, "did you?"

"A bit." He replied, sitting up in his bed, "think I heard the kids wake up."

"Ellie was up at 0600." Jack replied as she pulled clothes out of her drawer, "I seriously doubt Nick is up yet.

"I meant, Liv, Caleb and Jessie." Gibbs replied with a raised eyebrow.

"Of course." Jack responded.

She felt like an idiot. She knew Gibbs saw his team as his kids and they looked up to him as a father but she was still uncertain where she stood with the team. She had made friends with them and she had come to love them like her own kids, but that didn't mean they necessarily felt the same about her.

"I'm going to get changed and head downstairs."

She closed the door to the bathroom and leaned against it, suddenly feeling very tired. She quickly changed into light wash jeans and a navy blue sweater, she combed out her hair and grabbed her PJ's before heading back into the bedroom. She paused in the bathroom door way and quickly looked down. Gibbs was standing beside his bed, his jeans unbuttoned and hanging loose around his waist and his chest bare.

She felt her cheeks heat up and cleared her throat to let Gibbs know she was in the room.

"I just need to grab a pair of socks and then I can be out of your way." She said.

"It's fine." He replied, pulling on a white undershirt, "you can look up you know."

"Sorry." She muttered.

She felt like an awkward teenager and she hated it, normally she was so comfortable and at ease around Gibbs and all of a sudden she was fumbling every other moment. She didn't know whether it was the close proximity or just something wrong with her. She grabbed a pair of socks and pulled them on before turning around, Gibbs was now fully clothed in jeans and a NIS long sleeved shirt.

"Are you heading down?" He asked, nodding towards the doorway.

"Yeah."

She followed him out of the room and down the stairs, she grinned when she saw the three oldest kids sitting on the couch watching cartoons, all of them still in her PJ's.

"Good morning." She greeted happily, "what're we watching?" She asked, sitting down on the couch next to Jessie who looked at her with wide eyes and a toothy grin.

"SpongeBob." Caleb replied, "are you going to w-w-watch with us?"

"If that's okay with you." Jack responded with a grin, "I love SpongeBob."

She grinned over at Gibbs when Jessie crawled into her lap and curled up against her with her thumb in her mouth.

"I'm gonna make some coffee, do you want some?" He asked, nodding over at the kitchen.

"Yes please." She replied, "lots of sugar."

Gibbs smirked and nodded, he knew just how she liked her coffee, or syrup as he called it. He dug around the kitchen until he found the coffee grounds and carefully measured them into the coffee maker. He caught sight of Ellie chopping wood out the front window and shook his head, he should have known that's where she would go. He leaned against the counter and watched her work while he waited for the coffee to brew.

He was worried about her, he had been with her through some of the hardest times in her life, her divorce, losing Qasim and Reeve's dying, he knew when she was struggling and she was struggling. He had learned how to help her along the way but he had no idea how to help her at that moment, he didn't know if it was just the shooting bothering her or something more on top of that. He wanted to talk to Jack about it, he needed to know what she thought about the entire thing he just had to get her alone.

He turned away from the window as the coffee pot sputtered to a stop. He grabbed two mugs out of the cupboard and poured them each a coffee, he winced as he poured what he thought was an insane amount of sugar into Jack's coffee.

Jack looked away from the TV as Gibbs approached with two steaming mugs of coffee, she took the mug with a grateful smile and turned back to the TV. Caleb had moved to lean against her side and Liv had shuffled over closer as well, Gibbs took a seat at the other end of the couch and sipped his coffee silently.

"I'm hungry." Caleb stated after the episode had finished.

"Me too!" Jessie exclaimed, pulling her thumb out of her mouth, "pantake!"

Jack looked down at Jessie with a grin and raised her eyebrow at Gibbs.

"Barb won't care." He said with a shrug.

"Would you two like pancakes?" She asked, looking at Caleb and Liv.

"Yes please!" Caleb exclaimed, "Can w-we have chocolate chips?"

"We'll see." Jack replied with a wink, "Liv do you know where your Grandmother keeps everything?"

"Yeah, if I show you where it is can I help make the pancakes?"

"Of course you can." Jack replied cheerfully, "Do you want to go sit with Gibbs?" She asked, standing up with Jessie.

When the toddler nodded she handed her over to Gibbs and followed Liv into the kitchen, she watched the ten year old pull out mixing bowls and ingredients for pancakes, she had just started measuring out flour when Barb came down the stairs still in her PJ's.

"Good morning!" She greeted the group, "what are we up to?"

"J-Jack is making us pancakes!" Caleb exclaimed, "and Gibbs is w-watching SpongeBob with us."

"I can see that." Barb replied, "you don't have to make breakfast."

"Oh I don't mind at all." Jack replied waving her hand, "as long as you don't mind sharing your kitchen for a bit?"

"No, not at all, you're more than welcome to use whatever you'd like." Barb offered, "would you like any help?"

"Tome watch, Gamma!" Jessie called out, her thumb still in her mouth.

"I'll be just fine." Jack replied, waving Barb off, "although if you can pry Gibbs away from the TV and send him over here that would be great."

"I'll see what I can do." Barb promised.

Jack watched the older woman wander off with a grin on her face, she could see hints of Ellie's personality in her. She continued measuring out ingredients until Gibbs made his way over to the kitchen.

"What's up?" He asked, leaning against the island.

"Can you go out and check on her?" She asked quietly, nodding her head out the window towards Ellie, "she's been out there for a long time."

"That's how she copes." Gibbs replied.

"Is that why you have so much fire wood in your backyard?" Jack questioned, pausing her work.

"Yeah." Gibbs replied, "Have about six years worth at my cabin."

She seemed to consider that for a minute before returning to making her pancakes, she watched Gibbs refilled his coffee and poured a second one before heading towards the door. She watched out the window as he approached Ellie.

Gibbs took a seat on a large log and rested both coffees on his knees, he saw Ellie glance in his direction. She nodded in acknowledgement but she continued chopping the wood. He wasn't overly surprised.

"You should be wearing a jacket at least." He stated.

She was only wearing a hoodie and the wind was bitter cold, even he felt chilled through his winter jacket and long-sleeved shirt.

"Why are you out here Gibbs?"

"Thought you might enjoy some coffee." He replied, holding out the mug, "And thought you might wanna know that Jack is making her famous pancakes."

Ellie lowered the axe and turned to face Gibbs with a small smile on her face, it wasn't much but it was something and he was grateful for that.

"I am hungry." She stated slowly as she stepped forward to take the coffee, "thank you."

"How'd you sleep last night?" He asked quietly.

"I didn't." She replied with a small sigh.

"We didn't either." Gibbs said.

"We?" Ellie asked with a small smirk, "is there a we?"

"Not what I meant and you know it." Gibbs replied, a gentle warning in his voice, "you should take a nap this afternoon."

"I'll be fine." Ellie replied dismissively, "did you come out here on your own or did Jack send you?"

"She's just worried." Gibbs explained, "you know how she is, it's how she shows she cares."

"She's a good person." Ellie stated, giving him a pointed look.

"Something you'd like to say, Bishop?"

"No." Ellie replied innocently, "just that Jack is a good person."

Gibbs rolled his eyes and sipped his coffee, he knew what Ellie was getting at but refusing to say out right. He knew that his whole team could see the spark between them, even he, as romantically challenged as he was, could see it. He simply refused to act on it, he was letting Jack lead the way and that meant not letting anyone push them into anything they weren't ready for.

"You ready to come inside?" He asked, "I think Jack's gonna need some help making pancakes for sixteen people."

Ellie nodded and handed him her coffee mug so she could stick the axe securely into the chopping block.

"Do you think Jack'll make the cinnamon apple pancakes I like?" Ellie asked hopefully.

"I think you could convince her." Gibbs replied.

He handed Ellie her mug and wrapped his now free arm around her shoulder as he lead her back to the house.

 **Hey Everyone! I was so hoping to have this done before New Years but obviously that's not happening… I hope you enjoy and I love to hear from you!**

 **~Katie**


	11. Chapter 11

**Eleven**

Ellie waited for Jack to step out of the dressing room, she was enjoy a bit of girl time with the older woman as they shopped for outfits for the New Years Eve party her parents were throwing. It was a semi-formal event and none of them had packed anything appropriate, they had decided to spend the afternoon at the mall shopping after spending the morning playing outside with the kids.

Ellie was starting to feel the effects of being up all night the previous night but she was hoping the coffee in her hand would kick in sooner rather than later. She watched Jack exit the room in a floor length black dress and wrinkled her nose, it was nice but it just wasn't Jack's style and it was almost too formal.

"I know." Jack replied with a sigh, "it's just not right."

"You have one more in there right?" Ellie asked.

She had a dressing room full of dresses waiting for her but she had wanted to see Jack's dresses first, so that she could concentrate fully on helping her pick the right one. She wanted Jack to feel fantastic at the party, it had been so long since she had gone out and the last time had ended in disaster. Part of her also wanted to make sure that whatever the woman decided on would absolutely take Gibbs' breath away, she had been trying to play matchmaker but it hadn't been working. Nick had caught on to her plan and had agreed to help her on Gibbs' end of things.

She had aptly named the project, Operation Parent Trap in honour of her favourite childhood movie.

"Yeah." Jack replied, breaking her out of her thoughts, "I'm just not sure about it though, it might be too _young_ for me."

Ellie rolled her eyes at the older woman, she knew Jack's age from her personnel file and although she was pushing fifty she looked absolutely stunning for her age.

"Jack, you look amazing, go try it on." She encouraged, "besides it's not like you have to get it if you hate it."

"True, but after this next one it's your turn, I want to see some of the ones you picked out." Jack replied, wiggling her finger at Ellie, "and then I vote we find the guys and go round up some food."

"Deal." Ellie replied, "I'm starving."

"You're always starving." Jack called from the dressing room.

"That's a fair point." Ellie responded with a chuckle.

She pulled out her phone and checked her messages while Jack changed, she grinned when she saw a message waiting from Nick.

 _This is painful…_

She smirked and quickly typed back a response, she had just hit send when the door to the dressing room opened. She gasped as she stared at Jack who looked stunning even with her hair falling in messy waves and her make up not done.

"Oh. My. God." Ellie whispered, "that's the one, that's's going to take his breath away."

"Who's breath way?" Jack asked suspiciously.

"Did I say that out loud?" Ellie asked guiltily, "ignore that, but Jack that dress is stunning."

Jack rolled her eyes but turned to face the mirror, straightening out the knee length black dress as she did so. It was a form fitting sheath dress, it hugged her curves perfectly but the most eye catching part of the dress were the gold designs that ran across the neckline and down the long sleeves.

"You don't think it's too young for me?" Jack asked, turning around to make sure the scars on her back weren't showing.

"Not at all, it looks amazing, Jack trust me."

Jack chewed her lip and turned in front of the mirror a few times, she hesitated for a minute before sighing.

"Do you really think he'll like it?" She asked in a defeated voice.

"Gibbs?" Ellie asked excitedly, "he's going to love it."

"It's not too fancy?"

"It's perfect, Jack." She said again, "we just need to find some shoes, and I can do your hair if you want."

"I'd like that." Jack replied with a kind smile.

She was really enjoying getting to see more of Ellie's girly side, they didn't get to spend a huge amount of time outside of work together and she was hoping to fix that.

"Now, let me go change while you change into your first dress."

By the time Jack exited the dressing room with the black dress over her arm Ellie was exiting her dressing room in a loose fitting navy blue dress, the look on her face showed her distaste for it and Jack quickly shook her head. The next three were also hard no's and the fifth dress was a maybe. It wasn't until Ellie walked out in a form fitting, long sleeved black lace dress that Jack knew they had found the one. The sleeves were off the shoulder and made Ellie's hair and eyes pop against the dark material.

"That's it, that's the one." Jack stated confidently.

She knew Ellie was a thirty year old woman but she couldn't help but think how _grown up_ the dress made her look. She looked elegant, graceful and positively radiant.

"What do you think?" Jack asked, "are you comfortable?"

"I like it." Ellie said slowly, "if I ask you something, can you not tell Gibbs?" She asked after a minute.

"Cross my heart." Jack promised seriously.

Ellie bit her bottom lip and toyed with the hem of her dress as she debated her question.

"Do you… Do you think Nick'll like it?" She asked nervously.

"He's going to love it." Jack replied seriously, "is there something going on there?"

"No…" Ellie replied quickly, "Gibbs has a rule about dating teammates and I already broke it once… I understand why he has that rule now."

"Ended badly?"

"He was killed in the line of duty." Ellie said quietly.

"I'm so sorry."

"Thanks." Ellie whispered, "I haven't really dated since then and I don't know if I'm even ready yet, rule twelve or not."

"Was it serious?" Jack asked.

"Yeah… He proposed shortly before it happened… I never gave him an answer, I said I needed to think about it." She said, "I was a mess after, I don't think I'm really cut out for relationships."

"That wasn't your fault Ellie, they won't all end like that."

"Maybe not all of them but I've learned in our work that no one is safe." Ellie replied with a sad shrug, "and even if nothing like that happens there's always other things to tear apart relationships."

Her mind went to Diane Sterling, Shannon Gibbs, Qasim, Reeve's, Ned Dornegat and all of the other people they had lost, half of them were supposed to be safe, they weren't field agents or even agents at all and yet they had still lost their lives so suddenly.

"Not all relationships are bad." Jack said, "sometimes they can be great."

"I guess I just haven't found the great ones yet." Ellie replied with a shrug, "it's not important anyway, with work there's no time to date." She added with a small chuckle.

Jack could see she was trying to change the subject and decided to let it go, it wasn't the time or place to coax Ellie into sharing anything more with her. She was grateful that Ellie had shared that much with her. She had read about her divorce in her personnel file but didn't know the reasons behind it or what had happened after it.

"What about you?" Ellie inquired with a grin.

"What about me?"

"Is there anyone special in your life?" Ellie clarified, "maybe a blue eyed, silver haired former marine? You know just as an example."

"Like you said," Jack replied, "he has rules for a reason."

"I think he'd be willing to break his rules for you." Ellie stated as she turned to go into the dressing room, "I mean I've never seen him kiss anyone in front of his team before."

Jack ducked her head to hide her blush even though Ellie couldn't see her through the door.

"He kissed Abby all the time." Jack argued.

"That's different and you know it." Ellie called back.

Jack didn't respond, she knew she and Gibbs had a spark but she wasn't exactly sure whether or not he had been trying to act on it or whether it had been an innocent gesture. She looked up when Ellie walked out of the change room, her dress over her arm.

"He looks at you differently." Ellie stated softly, "I've never seen that look on his face, he's actually happy when you're around."

"Even if that was true, he's a stickler about his own rules."

"I think he's loosening up on them." Ellie said, "whatever happens it's between you guys, can I just ask you one thing?"

"Anything." Jack replied seriously.

"Gibbs has been with me through some of the worst days of my life, he means a lot to me, just whatever happens please, don't hurt him." Ellie asked softly.

"I promise to do my best."

N*C*I*S

Ellie grinned across the counter at Nick, he was attempting to chop an onion without tearing up.

"Stop fighting it." She said with a laugh, "everyone tears up when they cut onions."

"I bet Gibbs doesn't."

Ellie paused to consider that, she had never paid attention to Gibbs when he was cooking but she was willing to admit that Nick was probably right.

"Speaking of, where are Gibbs and Jack?" Nick asked, "I haven't seen them in over half an hour."

"They went for a walk." JB answered, "They disappeared behind the barn."

"That's were we used to go to make out." George stated, giving JB a playful nudge.

"That's also where the trail starts." Ellie added, rolling her eyes, "Gibbs and Jack aren't horny teenagers, George."

"Well they aren't teenagers." George retorted slyly.

"Oh. My. God. Ew! George that's disgusting!" Ellie exclaimed while Nick made a gagging noise.

"Yeah, come on man." Nick added.

"What's disgusting?" Barb asked, walking into the kitchen mid-conversation.

"Gibbs and Jack making out behind the barn." Robbie stated from his perch at the island.

"They aren't making out behind the barn." Ellie protested, "they aren't even together."

"Yeah, okay." Robbie scoffed, "come on why are you so against Gibbs getting some action?"

"Please stop."Ellie begged.

"Everyone else is getting laid why can't Gibbs?" George reasoned, "he's an adult man and when was the last time he had a girlfriend?"

Ellie and Nick shared a look, she honestly couldn't remember Gibbs ever having a girlfriend, she couldn't even remember him showing interest.

"I honestly don't remember him ever having a girlfriend, I know a few of his exes but there's never been anyone new." Ellie said slowly.

"Why not?" JB asked in surprise, "he's not a bad looking guy."

"I don't know, he's been so busy with work and things at home have been kind of crazy." Ellie reasoned, "come to think of it I can't remember the last time we had more than two days off at a time and even then he was either helping out with the kids or had one of us at his place."

"Don't you guys do your own thing on the weekend?" Robbie asked.

"Well… It just depends on what's going on I guess, it's been a while since we've slept over there." Ellie replied slowly.

"We slept over three days ago." Nick pointed out, "and we were over there last week for dinner, and the weekend before that we went to McGee's with everyone for the twins birthday. The last time Gibbs was alone for a weekend he went to the cabin for a break and Phil and Fornell showed up."

"You guys are all aware that you're not ten anymore, right?" Robbie asked, "and that most people don't spend weekends with their co-workers, or sleep over at their bosses house."

"We're not most people." Ellie replied with a shrug, "and besides Gibbs would tell us if he didn't want us around."

She tried to sound sure of herself but Robbie's words were hitting a bit too close to home, maybe Gibbs wanted more space… Maybe they were the reason he didn't have a romantic life. Her mind wandered as she continued making dinner, she could hear Nick bantering back and forth with her brothers but she was so lost in her thoughts that she didn't catch a single word.

 **So… Do we want to know what Gibbs and Jack actually did on their walk? (No they weren't making out….) Or do we want to move on with the story? I hope you guys enjoyed reading this because I really enjoyed writing it! I love to hear from all of you!**

 **~Katie**


	12. Chapter 12

**Twelve**

Jack admired the lightly falling snow as she walked out the back door, Gibbs close behind her. She felt Gibbs' hand settle low on her back as he lead her towards the barn.

"I heard a rumour that this is where George and JB used to come to hide and make out, are you trying something, Cowboy?" She asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Nah." He chuckled, "not today."

Jack snorted and shook her head, it was rare that she got to see it but she really enjoyed his sassy side.

"How was shopping with Nick?"

She had enjoyed her time with Ellie but she doubted that the men had had all that much fun together.

"It was painful." He replied.

They turned on to a well groomed trial and Jack couldn't help but pause to admire the snow covered trees that lined the trail. She felt Gibbs pause beside her and rest a hand on her back.

"You good?"

"Just admiring the scenery." She replied.

"Yeah it's a nice view."

She rolled her eyes when she looked over to see him staring at her instead of the trail.

"Cheesy."

"Eh, matter of opinion." He shrugged.

She rolled her eyes playfully and started down the trail, she knew they were on the walk for a reason but it was still nice to get away from the hustle and bustle of the house and to enjoy some quite time just her and Gibbs.

"So, Cowboy I've got a question for you."

"Shoot."

"Where did your famous, or rather, infamous rules come from?"

Gibbs paused and turned to look at her questioningly, he was expecting them to talk about Ellie, not his rules.

"Shannon." He said after a minute, "she thought everyone needed a code to live by."

"Shannon's rule number one was never leave suspects together?" Jack asked, knitting her eyebrows together.

"No." Gibbs replied with a small chuckle, "her rule number one was to never date a lumberjack… The idea came from her and just kinda grew."

Jack gave him a half grin and nodded, "so no lumberjacks but carpenters turned marine are okay?"

"Why're ya asking about this, Jack?"

He wasn't upset, Jack didn't ask questions without a reason, he was just a bit confused about why this was so important to her all of a sudden.

"I had a bit of a talk with Ellie today."

"About?"

"Her fiancé." Jack replied, "Qasim."

Gibbs nodded and waited for her to continue.

"And that she understands why you have rule twelve." She added, "What can you tell me about her divorce?"

"Did she tell you anything?" Gibbs asked.

He placed his hand on her elbow and gently guided her left when they came to a fork in the path. He dropped his hand and continued to walk beside her.

"Not really, I just know what's in her personnel file, basically that it happened almost two years after she joined NCIS and that's about it."

"He had an affair." Gibbs replied, "Ellie took it hard, came back here for a few weeks to figure things out. Spent a lot of time at my place after that."

"And Qasim? Was that her first relationship after her divorce?"

"I think so but I'm not sure." Gibbs replied slowly, "she didn't tell me about any casual relationships, don't think she wanted me to know."

"No kid wants their dad to know about their sex life, especially if it's casual." Jack reasoned.

"Ellie has a dad."

"She has two." Jack stated, "you don't worry about her like a boss worries about their subordinate, you worry about her like a father worries about his little girl, and she loves you like a daughter loves her dad, she trusts you and she doesn't trust easily."

"She's been through a lot."

"More than anyone her age should ever have to go through." Jack agreed, "Especially lately."

He nodded, he was wracking his brain for ways to help his youngest agent but he was at a loss.

"How do we help her?" He asked, slowing his steps a bit.

Jack sighed, "I don't know, honestly I'm not sure it's just the shooting bothering her."

"Thought the same thing." Gibbs admitted.

"I think that right now we need to focus on the effects of the shooting and work from there."

"So what's the plan? You're the head-gamer here."

Jack raised an eyebrow at the title and shook her head softly.

"You and Ellie are too much alike."

"Don't know if that's supposed to be an insult or a compliment." Gibbs stated.

"Neither, it was a statement. She's not going to talk to anyone she doesn't trust, you were probably right when you suggested taking her to see Grace with you… I'm just afraid that there may be a few things that she won't discuss with you in the room."

"I'll go for the first few and then see if she'll go by herself." He suggested, "Don't want her to feel uncomfortable with me there."

"I don't think she'll feel uncomfortable, but like I said before there are _certain_ things she won't discuss in front of you."

"Is there something you know that I don't, Jack?" Gibbs asked, pausing to look at her questioningly.

"No." Jack replied slowly, "I don't know anything for sure, but I have eyes…. And so do you."

"Yeah…" Gibbs sighed, "I know, not sure I like it but I'm not going to stop them."

"You already are." Jack muttered, "they're not going to do anything with your rule hanging over them, especially not after what happened with Qasim." She explained when he looked at her questioningly.

"I don't want to stop her from being happy, she deserves to be happy." Gibbs stated.

"I think you and her need to have a heart to heart, I know that's not your thing, Cowboy but maybe for Ellie's sake you need to learn."

"I'll talk to her." He promised, "what about when we get back to work, can she be in the field?"

Jack pursed her lips and turned to face Gibbs, she knew what her wanted hear but she also knew she couldn't tell him what he wanted to hear.

"I want Grace to do a psych evaluation on her, I'm worried being back in the field will trigger another panic attack. If Grace passes her than she's fine to go back, until then she's on desk duty."

"She's not going to like that."Gibbs stated.

"I know, like I said you're too much alike." She replied with a wink.

She turned and started walking again, she was still worried about Ellie but she felt lighter after talking about it. She let her arms swing at her sides as she walked, she was enjoying the feeling of the cool air against her face and the large snowflakes falling all around them. She stopped when she could no longer see or hear Gibbs beside her and turned around slowly.

Gibbs paused in the middle of the path to watch the carefree way Jack was swinging her arms as she walked. He didn't get to see her completely relaxed very often but he could tell that she felt the same lightness that he was feeling. The lightness that came with having a plan, the lightness that came with no longer feeling helpless. He watched her turn around and couldn't help but feel a slight jump in his stomach at the sight of her, the snow sticking in her curly blonde hair and her hazel eyes shining.

"Penny for your thoughts." She said, her eyes dancing as she watched him with a smile on her face.

"Not worth a penny." He replied, shaking his head as if to clear it.

He stepped forward until he was standing in front of her, he expected her to turn and continue walking but she simply stood there looking up at him with a raised eyebrow. He looked down at her and found himself captivated by a loose piece of hair, he reached up and brushed it back behind her ear without thinking. She rested her cheek against his hand and smiled up at him.

She could see the conflict in his blue eyes and wondered if he would lean down to kiss her. She had thought that he was going to kiss her on Christmas Eve while they were dropping the baby off but she had quickly ducked her head, not wanting their first kiss to be while on the job. She tilted her chin up just a bit, but it was him to duck his head this time. He chuckled softly, placed both hands on her shoulders and gave them a gentle squeeze.

"We'd better get back."

She didn't miss the gruffness of his voice or the way he gave her shoulders one more squeeze before dropping his hands. She watched him turn away and quickly grabbed his forearm.

"Gibbs." She said, stopping him in his tracks.

She waited until he was facing her before reaching up to place a hand on the side of his neck, she stood up on her tiptoes and gently kissed his cheek, letting her lips linger for a minute before she pulled back.

"You're right, we should get back. " She whispered.

She reached down and gave his hand a gentle squeeze, she went to let go but he held tight, intertwining their fingers as they walked.

 **Hope you all enjoy! I love to hear from you guys! I own nothing but I just wanted to say that I was absolutely overjoyed and overwhelmed by the number of replies I got for the last chapter, thank you all so much! I'm thinking I'm only going to have 2-3 chapters until we're all finished here and I've enjoyed writing this so so much! Now as a side note I wanted to address the comments I've gotten on chapter length, in all of my normal stories my chapters are insanely long however I am writing this one as a fluff piece with very little depth too it and I'm writing it in my spare time between family stuff meaning I don't have a huge amount of time to put into it, if I had the time I'd love to make them longer but I just can't right now sorry guys!**

 **~Katie**

 **PS. Check out my new IG account Katiegirl901**


	13. Chapter 13

**Thirteen**

New Years Eve came around faster than any of them expected, Jack mused as she watched Ellie put the finishing touches on her hair.

"What do you think?" Ellie asked, stepping back and gesturing to Jack's elegant up-do with a flourish.

"It looks amazing."

The loose low bun and complimented her dress nicely and the loose tendrils framing her face brought out her eyes.

"And you look fantastic." Jack added, "You're going to take Nick's breath away."

Ellie's hair was pulled back in a sleek pony tail with pieces framing her face, she had done light makeup but had made her lips pop with dark red lipstick. She stood up from the dressing table in Ellie's room and gently patted her hair one last time.

"You ready to head down?" Ellie asked, stepping towards the door.

Jack nodded and followed her down the stairs, a few guests had arrived so far but she spotted Gibbs as soon as she hit the bottom step. She couldn't help but notice how good he looked in black dress pants and a fitted navy blue dress shirt that brought out his eyes. He had forgone a tie and his signature white undershirt was also missing, she noticed the way his eyes found her and couldn't help but smirk at the look on his face, Nick wore a similar look on his face but his eyes were fixed on Ellie.

N*C*I*S

As much as he hated parties and any type of social gathering that involved more than five people he couldn't say he wasn't enjoying himself. He didn't know very many people but he was more than content to watch Jack make her way around the room with Nick and Ellie. It was nice to see Ellie so laid back and he couldn't help but notice the way Nick watched her with a look of what he could only describe as awe and adoration. Jack was at ease as she spoke with Ellie's family, smiling and laughing at just the right times.

As the night wore on his agents and Jack gradually made their way back over to him and by 2350 they were all seated at one of the tables that had been set up.

"Oh I love this song!" Ellie exclaimed as a soft country song started to play, "Gibbs… You wanna dance?"

Gibbs pursed his lips but nodded, he wasn't a dancer by any means but he couldn't say no to Ellie, not after almost losing her. He slowly stood up and held out his hand to Ellie, he let her lead him over to the makeshift dance-floor that had been cleared in the living room and pulled her into his arms.

"You look nice." He muttered after a few moments of silence.

His first thought was that she had looked so _grown up_ in the dress, he knew the term wasn't right, she was thirty years old but still the dress made her look much older than her normal outfits did.

"Thanks." Ellie said with a grin, "you clean up nice too."

Gibbs smirked and rolled his eyes.

"Torres thought you looked good."

Judging by the way Ellie blushed and looked down she had noticed but had been trying to ignore it.

"There's nothing going on there Gibbs." She whispered, "We're not breaking rule twelve, I promise."

"Hey." Gibbs muttered, placing a finger under her chin and tilting her head up, "Rule twelve was there for a reason but maybe it's time to take another look at it."

"What do you mean?"

"You, your happiness mean more to me than any rule." He stated, "you once told me I was goin' easy on you, and you were right I was, but I was right too some things need to change. Two people lost their chance at happiness because of that rule, can't fix that but I can make sure you can be happy, rule fifty-one Bishop."

"Sometimes you're wrong?"

"Yeah, I was wrong. There's been enough bad these last few years, it's time to be happy, if he's going to make you happy then you go for it Ell."

"What about you?" Ellie asked, glancing over his shoulder, "are you going to let yourself be happy?"

Gibbs turned them on the dance floor so he could see where she was looking. He responded to Jack's smile with a smirk of his own and looked back down at Ellie.

"Yeah." He replied, "I'm gonna give it a shot."

The song came to an end and he gently released Ellie, before he let her walk away he leaned down and placed a kiss on the top of her head.

"I'm proud of you Ellie." He whispered, "no matter what you decide to do, I'm proud of you."

"Thanks, Gibbs."

He gave her hand a gentle squeeze before following her back to the table, he watched Ellie offer Nick a shy smile as she sat down beside him and shook his head softly. He had seen that look before, on a different woman, in a different place and he only wished he could go back in time and tell her what he had just told Ellie. He wished he could tell her how proud he had been, how he had only wanted her to be happy.

He was broken out of his thoughts as he was handed a glass of champagne by Barb who was bustling around the room with a tray.

"Ready everyone? One minute to go!"

Gibbs stood up with the rest of the group and watched Jack smile as they began the countdown.

"Ten… Nine… Eight… Seven… Six… Five… Four… Three… Two… ONE!"

The sound of people exclaiming _Happy New Year_ was deafening, he glanced over and quickly turned away as Nick leaned down to kiss Ellie. He turned his attention to the woman beside him, she had a soft smile on her face as she watched the commotion around her. He could see the change on her face as she realized he was watching her, she looked up with a raised eyebrow and a small grin. He reached out and placed a hand at the back of her neck.

"Happy New Years, Gibbs."

"Happy New Years, Jack." He replied, leaning down.

He half expected her to cover her mouth or duck her head but instead she tilted her chin up, he lowered his head slowly, giving her plenty of time to back out.

When his lips finally met hers he was almost surprised by the spark he felt, something he hadn't felt in years. He felt her smile into the kiss and knew she felt it too, it didn't last long, it was chaste and relatively innocent but he found himself wanting more as they pulled away. She obviously felt the same way as she leaned forward to give him another quick peck before finally stepping back.

He returned the goofy grin on her face and turned to Nick and Ellie who were both studying them with smiles on their faces. He felt happier and more at peace than he had in a long time. It was messy, far from perfect and they were missing a few people but this was his family, the two people in front of him who had grown so much in the time he had known them and the strong woman who had been standing by his side unfailingly for the last year. He couldn't ask for better people to bring in the new year with him and he couldn't ask for a better family.

 ** _The End_**

 **Well guys I'm sorry I haven't updated in a bit, I got really sick on Thursday and it's just starting to let up. I'm not entirely thrilled with how this turned out but I wanted to wrap it up so I could get back to Pushing the Limits and Today's New Friends… Thank you guys for the amazing support for this story, seriously the amount of reviews was insane and I am so so thankful for you guys! I've loved every minute of writing this and am a bit sad to see it go! Luckily I still get to play with this lovely family in Pushing the Limits! (Shameless plug there my friends sorry!) Please remember I own absolutely nothing!**

 **~Katie**


	14. Authors Note

Hey everyone! I know that y'all will probably hate me when you realize that this is not in fact a new chapter however I did notice that the majority of your comments were asking for more Slibbs content. I wanted to let you all know that I have two other Slibbs related stories (both of which will feature minor ellick at some point) As You Wish, a one shot collection and Pushing the Limits, a full length story still in the works. Now that I've put that out there I would also like to recommend a few other authors! JamJar98, NerdyJibbsOreo and BourbonScars all have excellent stories on . tchele has some awesome ellick and Slibbs stories over on AO3 and be sure to check out FromStonestoHallows, CrushingonBishop and Simplicity (specifically Slibbs start of something good) on YouTube! Also I know that FromStonestoHallows, JamJar98 and I all have Instagram accounts so be sure to check those out for some great NCIS content! (There content is great mine is like eh but I enjoy it so whatever lol)

Lots and lots of love,

~ Katie


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